(Nothing but) Flowers
by cheinsaw
Summary: Tenshi takes Yuuka on a visit to her celestial home.


Tenshi knocks softly on the door. "Yuuka-san? It's me." She waits anxiously, shifting her weight back and forth between each of her feet, but that anxiety all melts away when Yuuka opens the door to her cottage and gives Tenshi a warm smile.

"Ah, yes, come right in. I was expecting you. I've been brewing lotus and white today."

Tenshi loves going to Yuuka's place for tea. Yuuka grows the tea herself green and black and white and red, and infuses it with different flowers and herbs. It's one of her best-kept secrets, her tea, and she doesn't invite just anyone to sample it. It makes Tenshi beam with pride whenever she thinks of how Yuuka always sends her home with little sachets of lavender and jasmine, clove and ginger, chamomile and mint. Nothing has ever tasted so delicious.

"It smells delicious," Tenshi says, taking a seat and removing her hat out of courtesy. Yuuka's spread a checkered cloth over the little table sometime after Tenshi's last visit, and given it a centerpiece of ever-blooming sunflowers in a crystal vase. It's just like her, really. Tenshi reaches out to stroke the sunflower's petals with one finger.

"So delicate, aren't they?" Yuuka asks, without turning around. She pours the tea into two cups, sweetening Tenshi's perfectly as usual while taking her own plain. "My flowers love attention. They're quite happy you're here."

Tenshi's cheeks and ears go slightly pink. "W-well, thank you, Yuuka-san. I'm quite happy to be here as well." She blows on her tea before taking a sip, trying to distract herself from the blush spreading over her face. "Oh, this is wonderful."

"Isn't it? White tea is very gentle and calming. Perfect for quiet afternoons and early mornings." Yuuka looks so dignified doing anything, even just sipping her tea. Maybe it's the way she carries herself, the way she crosses her legs, the way she treats her own body as if it's the most important thing in the world. It reminds Tenshi of the officials in her father's court, but… softer, somehow. It must be something special, something unique to Yuuka. "Of course, I have to go to certain lengths for the lotus. It's quite a pain that the best ones in Gensokyo belong to the Buddhists."

"Lotus… grows in the water, yes?"

"Indeed."

"We have those in Bhavaagra." Tenshi smiles, thinking of the pink and white blooms that rest on the surface of the court lake. "My father wanted them grown outside our palace because they look so…"

"Beautiful, yet hardy." Yuuka nods. "I had supposed you celestials would be interested in plants like that…"

"I could bring you a lotus from our court," Tenshi says, thinking fast even as she speaks. "Or, oh, I'd really like you to accompany me to the court one day… There are so many flowers, I'm sure you'd enjoy it. You could even take some with you. And… it's really beautiful up there. I want you to see my home," she finishes, almost shyly.

"I'm sure. It's part of Heaven, isn't it?"

"Mmhm. Bhavaagra is accessible from the Youkai Mountain, if you know where to go…"

"Oh, I'm not sure if I'd want to go there." Yuuka shudders. "Too many tengu and kappa… They're barely worth fighting, they're so weak, but there are often many of them in groups. I just avoid them and leave it at that."

"They probably wouldn't bother us if we were together. And I could get you in to Bhavaagra, and we could eat peaches together." Tenshi's starting to feel like Yuuka doesn't actually want to go.

"A celestial and myself, though… Would that not make us even more of a target for the youkai?" Her eyes are wide with feigned innocence.

Tenshi hums. "I suppose they do like their privacy. But I promise, it will be alright. If it comes to it, I can fight them off for you."

"Do you think me that weak?"

"Oh, not at all!"

Yuuka smiles, reaching out to ruffle Tenshi's hair and then smooth it back down. "I'm only teasing. I'd gladly go with you."

And so, the next time they are to meet, Tenshi happily escorts Yuuka to the top of Youkai Mountain. It almost makes her ecstatic to have Yuuka flying at her side, and the kappa and tengu barely give them as much as a glance. Tenshi just makes sure to give the areas the tengu normally patrol a wide berth, and it's as simple as that. They reach the mountain's summit fairly quickly, and the celestial guards wave Tenshi and her guest right on through into Heaven.

The sun is warm and bright, as it always is. Fat, ripe peaches hang gently from trees, perfectly ready to be eaten at a moment's notice. Most importantly, though, are the fields Tenshi brought Yuuka here to see. "So many flowers…" Yuuka breathes, kneeling at the edge of the flower garden.

Tenshi looks on in amazement as all the flowers seem to bloom to their fullest around Yuuka, the field alight with blues and pinks. Tenshi's been living in Bhavaagra for so long that the sights are familiar and boring to her, but seeing the way Yuuka reacts to the gardens is like seeing Heaven for the first time all over again. "I told you it was beautiful," Tenshi says, instead of the overwhelming admiration for Yuuka, and how Yuuka can make _anything_ beautiful, that's on her mind.

Yuuka looks up over her shoulder, smiling. "You were right." She takes Tenshi's hand, pulling herself back up to a standing position. "I'd like some seeds for these flowers, if that's possible. I think they'd make a lovely addition to one of my gardens."

"I can arrange that," Tenshi says. "They just need to be kept warm. Very warm…" Her voice trails off as she realizes that Yuuka hasn't let go of her hand.

"So for Gensokyo's flower cycle, a midsummer flower," Yuuka muses, casually entwining her fingers with Tenshi's. "Yes. I can handle that."

"If anyone can, it's you," Tenshi replies, barely able to think about anything except how Yuuka is _holding her hand_. "S-shall we see about the lotus flowers, then?"

Yuuka gives Tenshi a warm smile, and a soft squeeze of her fingers. "Of course. Lead the way, my lovely host."

Tenshi has never been happier to do so.


End file.
